Warrior Spirit

The spirit of defiance in this nineteenth century photograph is palpable. This reminds me of the photographs that the French took in Algeria in the same time period. There is a challenge in these expressions. There are more expressions like this in the women of the rest of Turkestan: Kyrgyz, Kazak and Turkmen women in similar defiant poses. Right now, this is only part one of a series of photos for an essay on Turkestan women and defiance.

Yes Uzbeks wore the paranji and it’s multilayered. Her outfit is too neat and fancy to be in rural areas. Most likely she is 15 yrs old so young still for the full paranji. But different areas were different in niqab. If she was a horsewoman then she wouldn’t be in paranji all the time. She looks like she is much more mobile but still well-dressed so from an upperclass family. Iran and Turkestan is very different.